Volcano Watch: Webcam upgrades keep a sharp eye on Hawaiian volcanoes

Photography has been a crucial part of volcano monitoring in Hawaii going back to the start of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. In 1911, Frank Perret spent a summer capturing stunning black and white photos of Kilauea’s summit lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u crater. Fast forward a century, and webcams are scattered across the island, snapping images of the volcanoes 24/7 in 4K resolution.

The images taken over a century ago helped document the activity people were viewing in that era. Today, technology allows us to monitor beyond the capabilities of the human eye. Thermal cameras show and autonomously detect high temperature activity day or night. The images from both visible-light and thermal cameras are transmitted in real time to the observatory, then online to the public.

Camera technology is continually improving and over the past year, HVO staff have been working hard at upgrading the webcam network to keep pace with the changing technology and bolster our monitoring abilities. Much of this work has been funded by the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Act of 2019 (H.R. 2157).

One part of this upgrade is replacing aging webcams with newer, more capable models. Some of the cameras recently decommissioned were well over 10 years old. While those were adequate for basic monitoring, new cameras produce much higher quality images and some can remotely pan, tilt, and zoom (PTZ) their views.

At the summit of Kilauea, the most active area in the past few years, we installed a new webcam (B2cam) near the floor of Halema‘uma‘u crater for close-up views of vent and lava lake activity there. For years, our broad views of the summit caldera came from cameras in the HVO observation tower on Uekahuna bluff. With the deconstruction of that building, a new site was needed. We installed a new high-power PTZ webcam (K2cam) on the nearby radio tower to provide a view over the caldera. We also recently upgraded the webcam that monitors the outgassing plume from Kilauea summit (KPcam).

The Southwest Rift Zone of Kilauea just had a brief eruption on June 3 this year. Prior to that, we had upgraded the camera there to a wider-angle model to cover more of the rift zone (MITDcam).

Mauna Loa’s Southwest Rift Zone remains a hazard concern because of fast-moving flows that have occurred in this area, so improving the webcam coverage there has been a priority. Earlier this year we installed a PTZ webcam that can be remotely controlled from the observatory to better view any new activity along the rift zone (MDLcam). We installed another PTZ near South Point Road, to provide webcam coverage of the lower Southwest Rift Zone and Ocean View Estates (MSPcam). We also upgraded the existing webcam that looks at the upper portion of the Southwest Rift Zone (M2cam).

We continue to work on other areas for webcam upgrades as well. Future work includes bolstering webcam coverage on Kilauea’s lower East Rift Zone, and continued improvements on Mauna Loa.

Over the past year, we’ve also made more use of small, portable webcams that can be thrown in a backpack and deployed within hours. Although not as capable as our permanent webcams, these portable webcams can fill in observational gaps in the crucial opening stages of unrest.

These upgrades have been a team effort within HVO, and with permission from land-owning entities such as Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. HVO geologists help with site selection, physical science technicians do the hard work of equipment preparation and installation, and IT staff then set up the acquisition scripts to pull the images and manage the data coming in.

Valuable technical knowledge for these upgrades comes from collaboration with other USGS volcano observatories and the USGS/USAID Volcano Disaster Assistance Program. Our international colleagues at volcano observatories in Italy, Ecuador and Reunion Island (Indian Ocean) all rely on webcams and have also shared information that HVO has used to improve our own webcam network.

Webcams will continue to be an essential tool for volcano monitoring, and technology will continue to improve. Keeping up with these changes ensures that we have the best eyes on any new activity.

Volcano activity updates

Kilauea is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert level is ADVISORY.

Seismic activity and ground deformation continues at Kilauea’s summit and upper-to-middle East Rift Zone, at similar rates to the previous week. Over the past week, about 450 earthquakes were detected beneath Kilauea’s upper East Rift Zone and about 110 events were detected between Maunaulu and Pu‘u‘o‘o in the middle portion of the East Rift Zone within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. Over the past week, Kilauea’s summit continued to show overall slow inflation with relatively little ground deformation recorded in the upper-to-middle East Rift Zone regions. Unrest may continue to wax and wane with changes to the input of magma in these areas; changes can occur quickly, as can the potential for eruption.

Mauna Loa is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert Level is at NORMAL.

One earthquake was reported felt in the Hawaiian Islands during the past week: a M3.5 earthquake 6 km (3 mi) S of Volcano at 1 km (1 mi) depth on September 4 at 6:53 a.m. HST.

HVO continues to closely monitor Kilauea and Mauna Loa.

Please visit HVO’s website for past Volcano Watch articles, Kilauea and Mauna Loa updates, volcano photos, maps, recent earthquake information, and more. Email questions to askHVO@usgs.gov.